


Goodbye Is The Hardest Word

by MakeupLoverOtaku



Series: Mixed Chocolates [2]
Category: B-PROJECT 鼓動＊アンビシャス | B-PROJECT: Kodou Ambitious
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Body Possession, Canonical Character Death, Eventual Romance, F/M, Ghosts, Grief/Mourning, Haunting, Other, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-12
Updated: 2017-08-12
Packaged: 2018-12-14 10:34:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11781354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MakeupLoverOtaku/pseuds/MakeupLoverOtaku
Summary: Tsubasa is killed in an accident on a music video set for MooNs, and despite Momotarou's best efforts to move on, he can't… for he suddenly can see Tsubasa standing there as if she is alive and well over a month later. She is relieved that Momotarou can see her, and together they work out how to get her to cross-over…but when it comes time, is Momotarou ready to say goodbye for good?(Minor Mikado/Momotarou for body possession and other plot points)





	Goodbye Is The Hardest Word

**Author's Note:**

> Here we go! Time to dip into the tissues and feel some feels.  
> I honestly didn't want to write this sort of story about Momotarou, because the boy deserves all the hugs, but I'm aiming for something sweet, and I hope you enjoy.
> 
> Thank you for taking the time to read this fic!

**Part 1**

The accident at the studio was caused by a series of small errors all piling into one catastrophic ending: Tsubasa Sumisora was pronounced dead upon the arrival of the ambulance officers, the impact of the heavy set hitting her small body causing instantaneous death, with very little chance for survival.

The music video production for _MooNs’_ new song was put on hiatus indefinitely as the members of _B-Project_ and their management companies went into grieving. A dark cloud had settled over the group of fourteen young men, and they all announced in their separate group forums their need to take a break from the spotlight in order to come to terms of the death of their beloved A &R. Outpourings of support came through all the media channels, with numerous messages of hope that they would be back at their jobs soon.

The younger members seemed to be hit the worst, a day after the funeral, Ryuji Korekuni, Yuta Ashuu and Akane Fudo would be huddled under blankets in the lounge area of the shared common room, unable to be alone for longer than a few moments. Hikaru Osari and Mikado Sekimura would join them a few times, just to be a source of comfort and a random hug if needed. Tatsuhiro Nome, Miroku Shingari, Kazuna Masunaga and Tomohisa Kitakado would supervise the group nearby, but they themselves were struggling internally at dealing with the death. 

Tomohisa cared for Tsubasa like a Prince would for a Princess, and he knew he should have followed through with confessing about the secret kiss he had placed on her sleeping face almost a year ago. 

Kazuna had grown fond of the girl over time, and she had made his life much easier when it came to managing his usually crazily energetic group members. Witnessing the accident at the very set _MooNs_ was working did not bode well for the blonde, and he felt as if a part of his strength had been roughly severed away.

Hikaru, despite being a sempai for the younger members, was the most emotionally wrecked out of the whole group. Every few minutes he would break down into sobs, and would blame himself for the accident, much to the denial of everyone around him, stating that he was not at fault in the slightest. Clutching a plush animal that was a birthday gift from Tsubasa, he would pick a member to stick to for the day, actually experiencing fear if left alone. Nome found himself almost sleeping on the floor beside Hikaru’s bed to keep him from trying to get into bed with any other members (Goushi almost gave him a black eye for trying to curl at the foot of his bed).

Goushi Kaneshiro was not handling Tsubasa’s death well. His anger was stronger than usual, and he took to spending hours at the gym beating and kicking the punching bags till exhaustion took over, and he would sleep for a few hours before getting back to it. Kento Aizome would join in sometimes as a partner, but he tired quicker than the black-haired male, and would quickly retreat when he sensed another Goushi outburst. The twins Haruhi and Yuzuki Teramitsu grew quite concerned for their returnee sempai, and they knew that his unusually harsh anger was just his way of showing grief. They knew Goushi, deep, deep down, appreciated a lot for those he cared about, and Tsubasa was one of them.

The only member that seemed to be more put-together was Momotarou Onzai, although the others considered that his personality was normally gloomy anyway, so he seemed to be showing little emotional turmoil to the visible eye. Mikado knew his closest friend was hurting just like the others, and he didn’t push for Momotarou to join the others in their need for company.

The red-haired member would quietly spend time reading in his room to distract him from the gnawing anxiety and guilt. Being a natural-born psychic, he had the ability to sense spirits, and on the odd occasion have premonition dreams. Exactly a month before the music video shoot, he had woken in a sweaty fit after dreaming of a woman screaming and then seeing Tsubasa’s fearful, tear-streaked face.  
Not one to show outward concern to others, unless it was necessary, he had sent Tsubasa an email message the next morning asking her if she was well, mainly for the sake of his own personal assurance.  
When Tsubasa had answered with a chipper, _Of course! Thank you for asking Onzai-san!_ , Momotarou felt a small part of him sag in relief. He didn’t want to dwell on the dream after that moment, and he continued on as if nothing unusual had happened.

Then the accident transpired, and Momotarou witnessed a limp and unresponsive Tsubasa crumpled on the floor after they had removed the heavy set props. He and his fellow _MooNs_ members had rushed over, worried for their beloved A &R, but Momotarou could see that there was no light surrounding her physical form anymore: her soul had now permanently left, and he knew it was too late before the ambulance officers made their announcement.

Angry tears fell down his pale face as he remembered that fateful day once again, and he slammed his book shut in frustration, while scrubbing away the wetness with a free hand. A glance at the nearby clock showed that it was almost midnight, and tomorrow _B-Project_ were expected to be all at Daikoku Entertainment’s offices to begin the startup of their comeback. 

“Tsch,” Momotarou tutted, frowning. He worried for his fellow group members, especially Hikaru and the youngest members, who were all still struggling, even after a month. But, they were professionals, and he knew that they would be able to handle the workload once they had a proper routine to distract them. 

After going through his usual routine for bedtime, he sighed loudly before turning off the light and lying down on the cold mattress. His sleep patterns were not consistent, but he was grateful that there were no further premonitions or weird dreams to haunt his sleep.

“Hello?” a whisper was heard.

Momotarou shot up straight and glared into the darkness. “Who’s there?” He did not immediately recognize the voice to be of anyone that he knew, and he didn’t have shared quarters.

A flicker of movement caught his eye at the foot of his bed, and the room dropped a few degrees. “I don’t know…” the voice sounded scared and unsure.

Sensing no malice, Momotarou muttered an apology before switching on the lamp that rested on his bedside table, bathing the room in a soft light. He looked towards the direction of where the voice came from and froze, his unmatched eyes widening in shock, his mouth beginning to hang open at the sight: a frightened-looking Tsubasa Sumisora stared back at him, wearing the exact clothing she had died in. Her form was not completely opaque, and Momotarou had to blink a few times in order to check that he wasn't having a hallucination.

“Onzai-san?” Tsubasa asked, her voice quiet as her pink-coloured gaze caught his own. “Why am I in your room?”

Before Momotarou could reply, Tsubasa quickly glanced away and flickered out of sight, like a wisp of smoke.

“Sumisora…-san,” Momotarou managed to croak out. “You’re…”

 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Momo-san, you look terrible,” Mikado commented, as the members of _B-Project_ all waited outside for the vans that’ll take them to Daikoku Entertainment. The morning sun was bright, with no visible clouds, and some of the members perked up as the warmth of the day woke them from their sleepy stupor.

Momotarou unconsciously lowered his head, his long hair covering even more of his face from the gaze of his friend. “I didn’t sleep well,” he admitted, his voice quiet so the others wouldn’t hear.

“Nervous about having to get back to work?” Mikado asked, a half-hearted smile on his lips.

The other male shook his head, and crossed his arms to stop himself from fiddling with the edge of his jacket. “Just…dreams,” he muttered, trying to sound vague so that Mikado would get the hint.

The bespectacled male, despite having a childish and almost irritating obsession for a particular magical girl anime, was smart enough to figure out when to drop a subject, especially whenever Momotarou looked particularly withdrawn. He placed a hand on the redhead’s shoulder and gave it a brief squeeze before letting go, just as the vans arrived at the curb beside the apartment building.

 _Kitakore_ and _MooNs_ shared a van, while _THRIVE_ and _KiLLER KiNG_ shared another. Usually there would be pleasant chatter amongst the members, but there was none besides the odd grunt or sigh. They were going to meet their new A &R at this meeting, among other things, and none of them were willing to admit that they were ready to move on.

Momotarou watched the city buildings pass as the van drove down a main street in Roppongi, a wealthy area of Tokyo. They were headed south-east, to Odaiba, where the headquarters of Daikoku Entertainment resided. Although _THRIVE_ and _KiLLER KiNG_ were managed by Brave Entertainment, the Daikoku brothers often used each other’s offices for group meetings, just to make it easier for them all.

A breeze had picked up, blowing in the salty scent of Tokyo Bay. It ruffled the hairs off Momotarou’s face as he stepped out of the van, clearing his view for a few moments. He took a breath, after noticing that no spirits had joined their group, and he felt a bit calmer at the lack of needing to use his medium powers.

“Ready, everyone?” Tomohisa called, taking the lead. A series of half-hearted nods and shrugs answered him, and his features pinched slightly. “Let’s continue on for Sumisora-san, alright?”

Yuta and Hikaru were the more enthusiastic nods of the group, but overall the mood lifted slightly, determination fuelling their every step as they stepped inside the headquarters’ reception area.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“…now that we have determined the recording and rehearsal schedule, it’s time to move onto another important issue.” Atsushi Daikoku continued, shuffling the pile of papers in front of him. His brother Shuuji sat beside him at the table, while the members of _B-Project_ either sat or stood across from the brothers, as there was not enough room for all fourteen members to be seated at once.

Momotarou frowned, his gaze caught by flickering movement near the door. It didn’t happen again, so he just brushed it off as a passing spirit, and focused back to the meeting. Atsushi was beginning to stand, and gave the group in front of him a sad smile, “I know you all have had to recover from the tragedy, but we cannot delay any more of your commitments any further, and so I will be assigning a new A&R to help with your transition back into the spotlight.” He then turned and walked towards the door, turning the handle and pulling it open, revealing a young woman who looked to be in her early twenties, bright orange hair pulled back in a high ponytail, and wearing a sensible pants suit.  
“Gentlemen, this is Marika Nakamura, someone who has worked for the company for a few years as an assistant A&R for our other groups.”

Marika bowed politely. “Pleased to meet you all,” she said, her voice pleasant. 

Tomohisa stood from where he sat and bowed back, his face the standard Princely pleasantry. “Pleased to meet you as well,” he replied. “And please look after us.”

The other members bowed back and voiced their own greetings and thanks, some more begrudgingly than others, but no true ill intentions. They all knew that they needed an A&R to function and to maintain group harmony, and it would not be fair on Marika to be disliked just because she was not Tsubasa.

Then, just as they were about to continue the meeting, Momotarou felt a brush of cool air on his right cheek, causing him to look by his shoulder, where supposedly no one stood. Tsubasa stood there, her arms crossed as if feeling cold, her expression incredulous as she stared at Marika. “What…?” she whispered.

It took all of Momotarou’s ability to remain neutral as the meeting progressed. He decided to keep his gaze on the papers at the table, so that he could easily glance to his right and monitor Tsubasa’s… _’Ghost? Soul? What is she?’_

As the meeting progressed, so did Tsubasa’s distress. She began to speak louder, much to Momotarou’s discomfort, as he struggled not to grimace.

“A new A&R? Why? What happened? No one has told me anything about this?!” Tsubasa voiced, her arms flailing, then she paused her movements. “Wait…can you hear me? Hello? _Why are you not looking at me?!_ ” Her cries were beginning to become too much, and Momotarou had to either ignore it or address it.

“Excuse me,” he said, bowing. “May I request a quick bathroom break? I won’t be too long.”

Atsushi waved a distracted hand his way, which was his way of giving permission for the redhead to leave the room. Momotarou took the chance to walk in front of Tsubasa’s gaze, and look at her directly, before exiting the room, hoping that his small signal had worked.

After stepping into the bathroom and closing the door, Momotarou turned to see a confused Tsubasa standing there, her hands on her hips. “Onzai-san,” she said, sounding tired. “Tell me, what’s going on? Who was that girl?”

Momotarou resisted the urge to rub his tired eyes, instead choosing to lean against the nearest wall, keeping his gaze on the girl in front of him. “Sumisora-san…” he began. “What is the last thing you remember?”

Tsubasa blinked, looking confused. If Momotarou wasn’t trying to keep calm at the sight of his dead A&R, he would have thought the expression cute. “I remember…music?” she stopped, frowning. “You were there, but you looked…sad?” She jerked up and took a step towards the male. “Are you hurt?”

 _Blink. Blink._ Momotarou’s brain broke for a second, before restarting and remembering to answer the strange question. “No,” he replied, still maintaining his studious gaze on the girl. “But you are right on my sadness.”

Tsubasa frowned, and took another step forward, reaching a hand up. She aimed to touch the male’s shoulder…but her hand passed right through. Momotarou felt goosebumps gather where she had touched, extreme cold coming from the ghostly touch. The girl quickly retracted her hand, realization coming across her features. She slapped a hand across her mouth just as a sob hiccupped its way up her throat, causing her to quickly turn around in an effort to hide her turmoil.

“I remember…” she croaked wetly. “There was a sudden, crushing pain; I couldn’t breathe…”

Momotarou pushed himself off the wall and stepped around the girl till he stood beside her, feeling unsure on what to do. Even with living beings, reaching out to touch someone was not something he actively did, so comforting an upset ghost was something completely out of his range of experience, despite his psychic abilities.

“I heard crying,” Tsubasa continued, her arms clutching her sides, eyes screwed shut. “Then goodbyes… Everyone was so sad, but none of them could see me.” She jerked her head to look at Momotarou, “Until you saw me.”

“You remembered my abilities,” he stated, and the girl nodded. He took a breath, before asking, “Do you want me to tell you what happened?”

Tsubasa nodded slowly, her gaze falling to the ground as she listened to the story of her dying in an accident.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Later, after the _B-Project_ members had eaten in the company cafeteria for lunch, then went their separate ways to complete their needed tasks (signing of limited edition posters, CDs, a quick casual photo op for their social media accounts announcing their comeback, etc), they arrived back at their apartment building with takeouts in hands.

Momotarou told Tsubasa before heading off to his room to wait in the common area, for she had taken to staying by the male’s side all day. Unlike the night before, she did not suddenly disappear, instead somehow managing to stay within Momotarou’s sight, much to his frustrations. It was all well and good that he could talk to her, but the grieving process was being replaced with relief, which was not how he should be feeling. _‘She is dead,’_ he had thought to himself as he signed posters, while Tsubasa watched him and the others complete the task, giggling to herself whenever Hikaru complained about his hand hurting.  
Whenever he had the chance to discreetly glance her way, although a gentle smile was upon her lips, her eyes held a deep sadness. A tug was felt in his abdomen when seeing this, and Momotarou shook his head, brushing it off as sympathy.

“Stay to the edge of the room,” Momotarou instructed quietly outside his room’s doorway, trying to pass off his murmurings as personal commentary over something on his smart phone. “You’re freezing to touch, and they others may become scared if they feel a sudden chill.”

Tsubasa nodded, her eyes not meeting his. “Will you be long?” she asked quietly.

Momotarou shook his head. “Just needing to find a book, and then I’ll come back to the common room.”

The ghost nodded, before turning and walking slowly towards the noisy common room. Momotarou watched her briefly to see what she’ll do, since the common room was located upstairs, and a twitch of a smile appeared when she began to ascend the stairwell. She may be a ghost, but her abilities to walk through walls or floors had yet to be realized.

Upon entering his room, he immediately went towards the small bookcase, which was full to bursting of books of numerous genres and topics. Mostly about spiritual histories and legends, but there were a few helpful books written by trusted mediums. His fingers skimmed the spines until he came across the one he wanted: _Spirit Harmony: How to Help Those to Pass_. His own mother was friends with the author, a trusted family friend, and was a mentor when he began to experience his own abilities of communicating and dealing with spirits and ghosts.

He opened to the index and began to search for the section on friendly spirits, for Tsubasa was no poltergeist or evil being. Just as he had found the page, there was a knock on his door.

“Momo-san! Your food is getting cold!” Mikado’s voice was heard through the closed door.

Sighing, Momotarou dog-eared the page he needed before standing. He placed the book on the bed for further reading, before walking over to open the door. “I’m coming,” he replied to the brunette.

Mikado blinked, then paused. “Are you alright?” he asked, his normally cheerful voice going quiet. “You seemed distracted all day today, and you were talking a lot to yourself at times.”

For once, Momotarou wanted to share his dilemma, but he wasn’t sure if Mikado was ready to know that Tsubasa still walked the halls of their residence. Then a memory surfaced: their audition and subsequent receiving of the role of Okita Souji for a stage play, and having to sword fight spirit-possessed costars. Goushi and Mikado proved that they were capable of handling strange and unusual occurrences when it came to the supernatural at that point in time, and it humbled Momotarou to have friends like that to share the burden. He decided to make up his mind right then and there.

He took a steadying breath, before replying, “I have some news, but I may want Kaneshiro-san to hear as well.”

Mikado tilted his head questioningly. “Why?”

Momotarou briefly closed his eyes and sighed. “It’s…hard to explain.”

“Did he do something to you?” Mikado asked, sounding serious. “I know he gets angry over the silliest things, but if he tried something with you-“

“It’s nothing like that,” Momotarou interrupted, shaking his head. “It’s something to do with…Sumisora-san.”

“Sumisora-san?” Mikado breathed, his eyebrows shooting up. “What is it?”

Momotarou shook his head again. “We need to go to the common room and find Kaneshiro-san,” he said, a note of finality in his voice. Then he walked past Mikado, pulling his door shut behind him, and headed towards the stairwell.

Mikado trailed after his redheaded bandmate and friend, a look of confusion on his youthful features. He didn’t ask any further on the matter, and a grain of curiosity tingled, with him wondering why Momotarou wished to speak to both him and Goushi at the same time on a certain matter. The brunette rarely spoke to the black-haired male, even after starring in a stage play together and spending time rehearsing beforehand. Ever since the tragedy, Goushi was even less willing to spend time with anyone, outside of eating meals and writing music.

The two men arrived at the common room around the time everyone else was finishing up their meals. Two plates were left out for them, thanks to Kazuna having the mind to prevent the others from eating any additional portions. Yuta, Haruhi, Yuzuki, Akane and Hikaru were settled on the floor in front of the television with a comedy film, while Miroku and Nome spoke nearby by the windows. Tomohisa and Ryuji were working on some _Kitakore_ song lyrics on one of the couches, while Kazuna and Kento cleaned up the kitchen. The person they needed to speak to was not in the room, and Momotarou enquired to Kento as to his whereabouts; “I’m guessing he’s either in the gym again, and if not, I’ve spotted him going into the studio room.”

Momotarou nodded, and decided to eat the almost cold food left out for him, with Mikado following suit. Then, he suddenly just remembered: Tsubasa. A quick glance around, and his curiosity was sated: she was standing by the television, watching the movie with the younger members. As if she sensed his gaze, she turned her head and she met his. A happy smile broke across her features, and Momotarou felt his stomach twinge in the same way it did earlier in the day. _‘What is this…?’_

After quickly finishing their meals and giving Kazuna their plates, the two males headed towards the gym, not before Momotarou discreetly signaled to Tsubasa to follow behind them as they left the common room. Unfortunately, Goushi was not there, so they walked further down the hall to the small recording studio. Faint sounds of the guitar being strummed were heard, and a sense of relief came over the two as Mikado knocked politely on the door.

A disgruntled “Come in” came forth, and the two males opened the door and went inside, closing it behind them for privacy. Tsubasa quickly followed, darting into the room before the door closed, placing herself in a far corner. Goushi was sitting on one of the couches, guitar in his lap, with a notebook opened in front of him on the small table. There was a glass of something that looked suspiciously like alcohol beside it.

“What?’ the black-haired male grumbled, while he fiddled with the tightening and loosening of the guitar strings.

Momotarou stepped forward. “I need to talk to you and Mikado-san about something important,” he said, getting straight to the point.

“He says it’s about Sumisora-san,” Mikado offered, as he sat down on one of the other couches. Momotarou sat down beside him, while keeping his gaze on Goushi, who started at the mention of the girl’s name.

“What about her?” Goushi grounded out. “Aren’t we supposed to just forget about her for the sake of our careers, according to our dear management team?”

“Hey-!” Mikado began to stand, and Momotarou placed a hand on his shoulder, stalling him. 

After Mikado sat back down properly, Momotarou gave Goushi a serious look. “You understand my abilities, correct?”

Goushi frowned, then understanding washed across his features, and he nodded once. “I’d rather not think about that, but I know that without your abilities, we’d be either severely injured or dead.”

Mikado gave Momotarou a look. “What are you trying to say Momo-san?”

Momotarou sighed, and turned his head over to where Tsubasa stood, the girl looking unsure as she watched the men talk. “Sumisora-san, come here.”

“What?” Tsubasa blurted, looking incredulous. “Why?”

“Just trust me,” Momotarou said, indicating for her to come forth. Meanwhile, Mikado and Goushi were staring at both the redhead and the empty, silent space he was speaking to.

“Sumisora-san?” Mikado whispered. “Is she really here?”

“Tsubasa-san…” Goushi breathed, looking at where Tsubasa was standing previously, for she had moved across the room to stand beside Momotarou’s sitting form.

“She’s beside me now,” Momotarou stated, sounding calm.

Goushi gave him a disbelieving look. “How can I believe you?”

“I guess proof is needed in situations like this,” Momotarou commented, and he turned to where Tsubasa stood. “Can you touch the glass?”

Tsubasa glanced at the drinking glass on the table and then turned back to the redhead. “Why? I can’t pick it up.”

Momotarou gave her a reassuring smile. “But you, as a ghost, can remove the warmth out of anything. I just need you to chill the glass.”

Goushi gave Momotarou a glare. “Now see here-“

“Alright!” Tsubasa said, and she walked through the table and placed her hands into the alcoholic drink. The glass quickly began to chill, and fog up with condensation. “I did it!” she cheered, and gave Momotarou a triumphant look. The redhead could feel his cheeks pink slightly as he gave her a small congratulatory smile.

Goushi stared at his drink, his right eyebrow twitching. Then he let out a loud groan and slapped the side of his face. “I believe you,” he said, sounding defeated.

“Is she…alright?” Mikado sounded so unsure, despite his experiences of spirits during his friendship with the psychic.

“I’m fine, thank you for asking,” Tsubasa replied, then slapped a hand over her mouth, mortified. Momotarou let out a breathy laugh, and relayed her response, causing Mikado’s cheeks to burn.

Goushi’s gaze was darting back and forth between Momotarou and the chilled glass on the table. “Why is she here?” he asked, his expression changing from disbelief to concern.

“That is something we need to work together to figure out,” Momotarou said, and Tsubasa nodded. “She appeared last night all of a sudden to me, but apparently she’s been trying to contact us earlier.”

“I don’t know how long, sorry,” Tsubasa added, looking forlorn. 

“Is she…whole?” Mikado paused, unsure on how to reword his question, but Momotarou understood.

“She looks as healthy and charming as she used to,” Momotarou offered, causing Tsubasa to blush and look away.

Goushi placed his guitar down on a stand and leaned forward, placing his face into his hands, letting out a groan. “I don’t know how to handle this,” he grumbled, his voice muffled.

“This is a secret between us three for now,” Momotarou warned. “You two are the most understanding of my abilities, and know how to handle this abnormally strange situation.”

Mikado nodded. “At least you will not be alone in your burden,” he said, patting Momotarou on the shoulder.

Momotarou nodded before looking at Tsubasa, expecting her to look happy about the situation, but didn’t expect to see her expression fall, and her hands to clutch at her sleeves. “A burden…” Tsubasa muttered, barely audibly enough for the psychic to hear.

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Note: Marika was named after one of my favourite students, who loved mathematics and cute characters.


End file.
